‘Shrinkflation’ Finds Its Way Into Reviews on Yelp in Q2 2022

“Shrinkflation,” or the perception that the size or quantify of offerings has decreased while the price remains the same or goes up, found its way into reviews on Yelp for the first time during the second quarter of 2022. The business directory and crowdsourced review forum released its Yelp Economic Average report for the period Wednesday, and data science leader Pria Mudan said in a statement, “Despite rising inflation, activity on Yelp suggests that consumer spending remains strong as people search for higher-priced businesses more frequently than prior to the pandemic. However, that doesn’t mean consumers and businesses aren’t feeling the pinch of inflation. We saw reviewers use inflation-related language at record levels, particularly in the dining, arts and entertainment and travel categories. And for the first time, reviewers are describing shrinkflation-related experiences where the size or quantity of goods are noticeably smaller, which is most referenced at restaurants serving more affordable fare.” Yelp said shrinkflation-related experiences were most commonly mentioned related to restaurants serving more inexpensive options such as hamburgers, hotdogs and pizza, as well as those offering up Chinese food, Italian food and seafood. inflationary language appeared in Yelp reviews 28% more during the second quarter of 2022 than during the same period in 2021 and 33% more than the second quarter of 2020, and the platform said 47 states (including Washington, D.C.) saw overall increases in mentions of inflation in Yelp reviews year-over-year, with those increases topping 25% in 35 of those states. The top business types in terms of inflation mentions were restaurants (up 38%), food (36%), arts/entertainment (33%), nightlife (30%), event services (22%) and hotel/travel (20%). Yelp said the share of searches using its least expensive “$” filter rose 7% in the second quarter compared with the prior-year period, while searches using its priciest “$$$$” filter fell by 12%. However, $$$$ searches were up 55% versus the second quarter of 2019 (pre-pandemic), while $ searches were down 24% over the same time period. Yelp said these trends were similar across searches for food, hotel, restaurants and travel, but auto services went the other way. Searches for electric vehicles were up 97% year-over-year and 175% from the second quarter of 2019, while searches for specific models of EVs were up 63% year-over-year and 118% versus 2019. EV charging stations saw a 23% year-over-year jump in consumer interest. Yelp said consumers booked reservations further in advance than ever during the first half of 2022, with the average time elapsed between booking on Yelp and the reservation date hitting 3.3 days in the second quarter, up 14% year-over-year, 55% from 2020 and 40% from 2019. This trend was particularly evident in up-and-coming and growing cities, with Yelp seeing the largest jumps in: Birmingham, Ala.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Grand Rapids, Mich.; Lancaster, Pa.; High Point, N.C.; Austin, Texas; and Nashville, Tenn. The media wait time for a table according to data from Yelp Waitlist was 35 minutes in the second quarter of 2022, up from 22 minutes last year and 16 minutes in 2020. Mudan said in a statement, “The first half of 2022 has been challenging for people and businesses alike. Yelp data shows that while consumers have steadily experienced increased inflation since 2021, they’re particularly feeling the effect this year. Inflation mentions in Yelp reviews are increasing more than ever before and, for the first time, we’ve seen mentions of shrinkflation-related experiences. That said, people are resilient and adapting. While consumers searched for fewer higher-priced businesses in the second quarter of 2022 compared to the first quarter of 2022, perhaps in response to inflation, they still searched for higher-priced businesses more frequently than prior to the pandemic—an encouraging indicator that intent to spend at higher-priced businesses is still strong. The first half of the year also saw consumers booking reservations further in advance than before, and a relative increase in searches related to electric vehicles, presumably to alleviate the burden of increasing gas prices. As people continue to settle into a new normal, Yelp data shows how they’re finding ways to adapt amid new economic challenges.”

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‘Shrinkflation’ Finds Its Way Into Reviews on Yelp in Q2 2022

Inflationary language appeared 28% more than during the same period in 2021

David Cohen

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